Overview & Design

A[r]ching for Style?

The Sony Ericsson Xperia arc has been on our radar for quite some time now - we initially did a short preview article with a video overview on the classy looker. The Android 2.3 device comes as one of the latest additions to its increasingly Android-crowded mobile space, but with a fairly unique preposition. Not only does the wiry phone boast of a unique design, it also comes with a huge 4.2-inch Reality Display touchscreen with the new Mobile BRAVIA Engine technology. Is the arc as good as it promises to be? Let's start with a recap of its design aspects:

Off the bat, we must say we are impressed - the phone is really very thin, light, fashionable, stylish and classy. However, because of this attention to weight, the phone's sturdiness feels somewhat compromised. As a result, the device feels fragile because of the light materials used to construct the arc with its rear plastic cover feeling like it can be easily snapped into two pieces. The other smaller area of concern we had was with the arc's fingerprint-friendly shiny sides which should have been replaced with a matte material finish.

While we are fans of the simple and clean design, we felt that more attention to detail would have benefited the physical buttons used across the device. For example, the tiny power button was too flushed for comfortable use while the shutter button required better positioning.

Apart from the above concerns, the overall handling experience was positive with its scarce weight of 117g evenly distributed across a comfortably-sized body.

Our initial impressions remain consistent to our first trial over three months ago - the user experience is largely a positive one due to its slim build and lightweight body. On the other hand, we weren't big fans of its small, sometimes, impractically positioned buttons and unlit symbols (the latter has resulted in occasions where we find ourselves awkwardly fumbling in the dark).